Drug Church - Demolition Man

 

BIG thanks to Mr. Brown, who clued me into the fact that comic writer Patrick Kindlon's band Drug Church has a new record out! Kindlon is kind of the pinnacle of the evolution of Punk Rock to me at the moment: he writes wonderfully subversive and thought-provoking comics, and he sings in an awesome band that has a social awareness that reminds me a bit of Fugazi, although turned somewhat inward. Really great stuff.

You can order the record HERE.

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31 Days of Halloween:

Not much to say about my viewing over the weekend. Rewatching the original Terrifier, I'm merely reminded how great the second and third entries are with an actual plot, although Leone's FX work is still great (although subdued by lack of budget), and it's interesting to see the Victoria character's origin again, given what she's become. That was Friday night; Saturday was Ti West's The Houe of the Devil with Joe Bob from The Last Drive-In episode aired during the first season of the show, back in 2019. House is normally a film I prefer to watch uninterrupted, but this is my second viewing in the last few months (I watched it when Maxxxine hit theatres, too), and I'd never seen Joe Bob 'do' the film, so it was time. Very cool factoids throughout.

Last night, I re-watched Lucky McKee's The Woods. This was his 2006 follow-up to May. May is one of my all-time favorite films. The Woods is... not a bad film by any means. However, something about it feels very hollow to me. I don't remember how I felt about this one when I first saw it upon the initial DVD release, but it definitely didn't move the needle with me this time. 

I feel like I am running out of time this month. There's been a couple not-so-great viewings, and there's a ton of stuff I want to get to. Might have to organize the remainder of my viewings. 

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1) The Killing of a Sacred Deer

2) The Houses October Built (2011)/Texas Chainsaw Massacre (50th-anniversary theatrical screening)

3) Loop Track

4) It's What's Inside/LONGLEGS

5) The Babysitter/Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein

6) The Hitcher/Lost Highway

7) GDT's Cabinet of Curiosities: Graveyard Rats

8) V/H/S Beyond

9) Killer Klowns from Outer Space

10) Terrifier 3

11) Summer of '84

12) Rosemary's Baby/Suspiria ('77)

13) Daddy's Head

14) Undead

15) Moloch/Tea Cup (episode 1)/ Evil Dead 2

16) Smile

17) Laura Hasn't Slept/Smile 2

18) Terrifier

19) The House of the Devil - Last Drive-in Presentation (original air date April 26, 2019)

20) The Woods

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Listen:

My friend Justin interviewed Chris Connelly on the latest episode of his YouTube show, Trailer Punk Podcast. Check it out!

Listening to this, I'm reminded I've still never tracked down a copy of Connelly's 2010 novel Ed Royal, and now I realize he has others! No excuses... 

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Playlist:

My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult - Confessions of a Knife

Oranssi Pazuzu - Muuntautuja

Blut Aus Nord - Hallucinogen

Oranssi Pazuzu - Live at Roadburn

Oranssi Pazuzu - Värähtelijä 

The Sisters of Mercy - Floodland

Perturbator - Nocturne City EP

The Body and Dis Fig - Orchards of a Futile Heaven

Various - Halloween Spotify Playlist

Orville Peck - Pony

Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth For Christ Choir - Like a Ship Without a Sail

Ennio Morricone - Black Belly of the Tarantula

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Never Fight A Man With A Perm

 

Words of wisdom Lloyd. Words. Of. Wisdom.

I discovered Idles two days ago completely by accident. I think. Since setting up a work-from-home office in our new house, I've been using Spotify more than I ever have. I'll always prefer Apple Music for most things, but there's some great stuff about their competition, too, one of which is how bands will just show up in your 'feed' based on their algorithm. I know a lot of folks hate that word and practice, however, I have found that, while I would never want to solely rely on an AI to find me music, they sometimes come up with some good stuff I had otherwise missed.

 
Case in point, Idles appeared on my landing page yesterday and I have no idea why. But upon hearing "Never Fight a Man With a Perm" for the first time, I was in love. The album that song is on - Joy As An Act of Resistance - is start-to-finish fan-fucking-tastic! 

This video of them performing Never Fight A Man With A Perm literally gives me chills. This is a band that the architects of the BBC's Hyundai/ Mercury Prize in 2019 never would have dreamed would be performing on this stage; seriously, the incongruency of the elaborate look of the set with this snarling mess of a band brings tears to my eyes and joy to my heart. 

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Watch:

New Lucky McKee? YES!

 

I'm betting money this will be announced next week along with the second half of Beyondfest's tenth-anniversary line-up.

 

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Read:

An unexpected surprise yesterday at the comic shop:

With allusions to the works of both Dickens and Dan Simmons, and probably the most refined interpretation of Occult Victorian England since Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s seminal work From Hell, I am totally in for the ride on El Torres and Joe Bacardo’s new comic Phantasmagoria! Also, the title is quite possibly my favorite word in the English language, so bonus points on that. This one is from Scout Comics' Black Caravan line, which is really starting to beef up their presence in the Horror Comic Continuum. 

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Playlist:

Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance

Idles - Brutalism

Sleaford Mods - Spare Ribs

Pailhead - Trait

Misfits - Static Age

Misfits - American Psycho

Godflesh - Pure

Revolting Cocks - Linger Ficken' Good

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Card:

Back to Missi's Raven Deck for a single card signifier today:

Equilibrium for sure. Yesterday everything was out of whack, and I'm weary of bringing that with me into today. I'll take this as a reminder of yesterday's pull - even keel. Weight (wait?) and measure. 

Lucky McKee

Lucky McKee is a fantastic filmmaker. 'May' is one of my favorite films, 'The Woods' was an excellent study in atmosphere and tension and his job as writer/lead actor in the Angela Bettis-directed 'Roman' stands out as a marvelous male counter-point to May's study of a lonely, isolated girl.

Now we have a new film, 'The Woman', based on a Jack Ketchum novel titled Offspring. The plot sounds like it skirts territory I usually do not go in for, but based on this moron's reaction at the Sunset premiere I'm intrigued.



Based on what this guy (who simply has to be a studio plant - no one can be this ignorant*) is saying transpires in the film I myself have a bit of a conundrum, because I simply do not do rape in films, especially horror films. The entire synopsis for the film, which can be found at the following link courtesy of Chud.com and Alex Riviello, this is not something I would be in for. However, confiscating and banning? I'm reminded of two other films I have had experiences with. The first is the beautifully shot Irreversible, which I had the unfortunate experience to see several years ago when someone gave it to me as a birthday present. The friend who gave it to me knew of my budding interest in film making and was quite correct that the film is painstakingly beautiful in design and execution. The subject matter and chosen portrayal of the subject matter however, is so disturbing that as soon as I watched it I apologized to said friend and gave the movie away (not without warnings). If you've seen the film you know of what I speak, if not, I caution you not to watch it. However, and this is where Mr. Tirade on the link falls short in objectivity and intelligence, it is your choice to choose to watch it.

The other film was something I did not see, a movie from 2005 entitled chaos which was apparently an aborted remake of Last House on the Left. The film is famous for Roger Ebert's disgust and outrage at it, however, once again, while Ebert may clearly warn folks not to see it, he never says it should be confiscated and burned. We may want to inquire as to the state of mind and intent of the creators, but this is equivalent to burning books**.

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* Why would I even say that when I know it's not true? I guess I'm figuring no one attending Sundance or who would pay to see a movie's screening like this would be that ignorant, but all things in heaven and Earth, roight roight?

** Which incidentally is alive and well in mainstream society. Don't believe me? GO HERE.